Hello! It is great to be back as a guest curator this year for #WomenInTranslation (WIT) month.

A bit about me, my name is Jess Andoh-Thayre. I am from Brixton, South London. I currently live in Cambodia. Before living here in Cambodia, I lived in Tanzania with my husband, who is a diplomat. I have also lived in Chile and Spain. I am a French, Spanish and English as an Additional Language (EAL) teacher. I recently qualified as a SENCo (Special Educational Needs Coordinator). After taking three years off, to have a baby in a pandemic and retrain, I will be returning to work this fall.

I was last here as a guest curator in 2021 when I was at the halfway point of my project of reading a book by women from every country in the world, I am now at the end of it.

I don’t say this lightly when I say this book project has been one of my greatest achievements to date; that is up there with my wedding day, the birth of my son, my degrees, living overseas, qualifying as a SENCo etc!

I started my book project almost four years ago not knowing where it would take me. I hoped to finish it by Christmas 2022, but the pandemic, having a baby and retraining have all got in the way, so that was an unrealistic goal. Like many, I have lost my reading mojo at times over the last couple of years, but it is back now.

Books and languages are a perfect combination in this book project. I am fortunate enough to read in French, Spanish and English. Without this ability to read in other languages, I would have struggled to have included an entry for some countries, like Cameroon and Paraguay.

 I always regarded myself as being well read but I have discovered the world of literature beyond English, Francophone or Spanish-speaking authors. What I have loved about this project is I am reading books by authors from countries that I know little about, I am learning about a country’s history, culture, and society. That is the beauty of translation; to be taken into a new world that is familiar yet so very different. I should always stress the importance of the small indie publishers to discover books, authors, and translators. They give literature a chance to be read. I have also valued modern tools like Twitter to connect with authors and translators in a way I could never have dreamt of as a child. This is the joy of a month like #WITMonth!

Over the course of the next month, I will present 24 books that have surprised me in this project. I hope you will enjoy my findings and reflections.

If you have any suggestions for books/writings I should read, please drop me an email at jesse.thayre@gmail.com or leave a comment below on the blog.